St. Olaf Residence Life Blog

Friday, May 13, 2011

In typical Residence Life fashion - bussing our own dishes, pictures, music, and lots of candy - our celebration of our year together was a blast! Here are a few of the pictures of all our lovely looking staffs. There is also a link to the video slideshow for those who weren't able to make it last night and wanted to see it.

It has been a year that will be remembered by the new friendships and relationships that were formed, the personal and professional growth that was both forced and embraced, the new experiences in crisis management that were gained, and the new titles that were acquired - mentor, facilitator, mediator, listener, problem-solver, programmer, supporter, community builder, supervisor and friend. You will always have your Res Life hat, even if you put it away for awhile - or always - and we are honored to share in that with you all. Thank you for all the work you've done and will continue to do, both officially and unofficially. We hope you've gained as much as you've put into this experience. Enjoy whatever is next in your life story.

Have a wonderful summer!

-Pamela & Charlie

-Ali, Amanda, Glen, Jessica & Ross

Here is the slideshow on youtube. It is a private video so you cannot search for it - you need to follow this link...

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

A HUGE THANK YOU to IHC and all staff involved in the planning and preparation as well as all volunteers who helped make it such a great night. It was a major success because of all your hard work and dedication. Great job everyone! :)

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

It was an adventurous interim for the Residence Life family! Check out what your fellow staffers were up to...

Fellow Hoyme Junior Counselor Will Carlson and I went on a Classics trip to Greece! Our class studied the ancient Greeks and Romans. We supplemented our studies with visits to archaeological sites in cities such as Athens, Corinth, Sparta, Olympia and Delphi. Here we have climbed to the top of Wolf Mountain in Athens, which overlooks the entire city! -Alexandra Garrett, Hoyme

Here I am at the Gateway of India in Mumbai, which I felt that over the course of my interim abroad I was able to cross over into a deeper understanding of the culture in India as I visited sacred sites and learned more about the many religions in India. -Hannah Trumm, Hill-Kitt

Over interim I went to Ecuador! The class I took was called "Social and Political Transformation in Ecuador." We got the chance to learn about the new Constitution Ecuador has and how it is affecting the people there, along with what social movements exist and what type of work they are doing to help facilitate change in Ecuador. I got to stay with an amazing family and it was a great opportunity to not only improve my Spanish but to learn first-hand about a different culture and build a relationship that I know will last forever! We got to visit indigenous communities and learn about the indigenous lifestyle and how discrimination has made political action difficult at times for these groups. We also spent time in the Amazon rain forest and did lots of hiking to experience the amazing biodiversity Ecuador has to offer. This trip was one of the best experiences I've ever had and my cultural perspective has really broadened - I definitely plan to go back in the future and live "el buen vivir" in Ecuador! -Lindsay Kubina, Mohn

I stayed very busy with wrestling this interim, and I am having a fantastic year so far! As far as class went it really wasn't my favorite, but I survived and now it's on to 2nd semester! This is of one of my wrestling matches in Skoglund.-Ryan Timmerman, Larson

Ian Peppel from Ytterboe went to Hawaii with a class...

The Hill Kitt staff cheered on the Ole mens' basketball team as they defeated the Gusties! UM YAH YAH - right Ali?! Ali (our AC) and Charlie Potts were cheering for the Gusties but unfortunately for them, they did not prevail. Oh well...

This is a picture of my JC partner/roommate/best friend, Megan Mcgovern, and me on a boat on the Sea of Galilee. I went to Israel/ Palestine for a religion class called "The historical geography of the holy land of the Bible." We visited many holy sites to learn about Jesus' life and ministry, and we also learned about the political situation and the conflict over land in Israel/Palestine. It was an amazing experience that helped me to better understand the Bible in the context that it was written in. -Amelia Stonesifer, Hoyme

During Interim, I was in India, studying the art of sacred sites, including Hindu, Muslim, Jain, Buddhist, and Christian sites. This picture was taken at the Taj Mahal in Agra. I had a wonderful time, and I miss the food already! -Jenny Nygren

Over interim this year I ventured to Israel/Palestine and Jordan for the Historical Geography of the Bible in the Holy Land program. The trip was led by Jim Hanson (Religion prof.) and Andy Willis (former pastoral intern) and included visits to pretty much every site you would ever want to see in Israel/Palestine! We saw it all: from the Garden of Gethsemane to the Dome of the Rock to Galilee to the abnormal amounts of cats that roamed the Old City of Jerusalem. We also explored some of the historical roots of the political conflict between Israelis and Palestinians and experienced the situation firsthand. The trip was an enlightening, incredible, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and I really hope to go back someday! The picture is of my awesome JC partner, Amelia Stonesifer, and myself on the Ramparts with the backdrop of the Old City and the Dome of the Rock. So great! -Megan McGovern, Hoyme

If you have a picture you still want to share...just send it our way! :)